Why are they trying to unionise in Detroit? They'll get replaced before anyone even blinks. If I were a unionist I'd try to find a prosperous town in a union friendly state to try something like this.
Why?
Because in most places, a fast food job is primarily a job one expects to hold for only a few years while getting the education needed to hold a better job that can afford to pay a living wage for a head of household. Detroit doesn't have enough of those better jobs.
Perhaps we should try to get some young upstart company to move there. One that would take advantage of the unique opportunities there. For instance, some propose that Detroit could serve as a laboratory to try out new methods of urban farming. I've heard things about a startup by the name of Soylent. It's said they've got an unique take on producing protein rich foods in an urban environment. Also, rather than being a soulless corporation, Soylent realizes that people are its greatest asset. Indeed, using people rather than machines contributes to its excellent environmental record. It's people that make Soylent green. (link)
Of course, Detroit does have a security problem. OmniCorp is said to be working on a project to help cities with a security problem engage in a delta sharp enough to change their course, but apparently we won't know the full details until next year. (link)
At the risk of stereotyping, I very much doubt many fast food workers are in school and working toward a bright future. Somebody is, I'm sure, but not everybody can be an architect or engineer. Many millions of people work these crap jobs with no prospect of upward mobility. Whether we should support unionization is a different issue, but let's not pretend that most of these folks are a few years of hard work away from a professional career because by and large, they're not.
